hide and seek
by Nellen
Summary: She hid. He sought. She wasn't found. He cried. --rikucentric, kind of namiku...ish.


_hide and seek_

- - x

I could have _sworn_ she was real.

I always played with her on the beach along with Sora and Kairi. I remember giving her a necklace created from seashells and making her a crown of pure white flowers which always had petals falling off and decorating her blonde hair that shimmered under the bright sun. She always smiled at me real wide as she swayed her white skirt back and forth, looking at me with blue eyes like Kairi's, except they were deeper, like there was a mystery within its depth.

I recall playing "Hide and Seek" with her everyday. Even if one of us didn't want to play and the other did, we somehow find ourselves hiding in a cupboard or looking in the bathroom to find each other.

I remember convincing her to play the game with me on a sunny afternoon. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but she shook her head, looked at me with tears coming down her cheeks, and told me she didn't want to. I frowned at her. I didn't know what to do, but for some reason I hugged her. I remember telling her something. I remember that I boasted it.

"I'll always find you no matter what."

She looked at me with hope in her eyes. I didn't understand why back then. I just grinned at her, thinking I'll find her since I knew all her hiding spots. She hugged me, and before she left the room, she said to me, "Promise you'll always find me?" I raised a brow, and promised that I will. Last thing I saw of her was of her smiling at me and doing that silly swaying thing before she ran off. I then went up to the wall and started counting, not really grasping the concept of why she made me promise her.

When I reached the number fifty, I smiled. I was confident that I would find her. I checked under the bed. Seeing she wasn't there I left. But before I dropped the covers, something caught my eye. It was a crayon with the description aquamarine. I took it and inspected it closely. It was still perfect, not blunt or anything. Absentmindedly, I put it in my pocket to keep it safe.

I went into the kitchen and crept towards the cupboards. And when I opened them, I screamed, hoping to scare her, but she wasn't there either. Only another crayon was sitting there. I couldn't put my finger on the color, but it reminded me of those blue orbs she harbored. And then again, without any reason or thought, I put it in my pocket. I was getting worried.

I ran out into the garden, frantically turning my head, making my hair move wildly. I searched for her in the rose bushes, around the cherry blossom tree, anywhere that she would hide. But in the end, I couldn't find her. But upon the tree, I found a little piece of paper.

And right then and there, I burst out crying. I was mad because I couldn't find her. And I was mad because I realized I broke my promise to her.

"Where are you? I'm supposed to find you! I'm supposed to keep your promise!" I cried out to no one in particular.

It's ironic really. I draw because of her these days. And whenever I'm frustrated, angry, or down, I always draw. So at that moment, I took the two crayons and the piece of paper, and I somehow found myself drawing a boy with aquamarine eyes holding a girl's hand with blue eyes. I marveled at my work. Still with tears in my eyes, I sniffed, determined to find her one day.

A few years later, I showed Sora and Kairi because I found it, snug in a box filled with memories, beneath thalassa necklaces, polaroids, and first stuffed toys. I know those eyes, the blue color so deep, unlike Kairi's. Kairi and Sora looked at me, saying that they don't remember her. I don't remember her either, but I remember the eyes, laughter in the garden, a small girl twirling a lock of pale golden hair.

And then I remembered her and the pact.

I've looked everywhere for her. In cupboards, around the cherry blossom trees, behind bushes, in random bathrooms, along the shore, but every time I looked, she wasn't there. Sora and Kairi are telling me to give it up, that she wasn't real. But I know she was. Everything seemed so vivid, so lively; it was an easy memory, unforgettable. They shake their heads at me, saying that maybe she just was my imagination.

I don't want to think that. I know she was real. I just know it. It's a feeling. Everywhere I turn my head, I see a swish of blonde hair, shining underneath the summer sun, a flash of a white dress, swaying, a slender body running, and when I close my eyes, I see blue, a blue so deep, that there's a mystery underneath. I hear a girl's voice, giggling, sobbing. I'm determined to find her.

Because I promised her.

_I'll find her no matter what_.

- - x

OMFG. So, I wrote this OHSOLONGAGO, like 2005 or 6ish? And, like, the middle school me back then thought this was a piece of crap and decided to leave it alone. But three or four years later, I reread this and thought this actually has potential! So, I edited it to make it a little better and stuff.

As for the idea, I thought about how Naminé disappears and we never see her again (pretty much). So, I was like, "Why not make her hide and disappear while Riku's trying to find her?! And then make him in the end obsess over it or something like it?!"

Do you get me? 'Cause what I'm typing here doesn't make sense to me either.  
'Cause she's not real! Yeah. I don't know.

I really would like some constructive criticism on this. (Don't we all?)  
So, I hope you enjoyed it? Kind of? Eek!


End file.
